Inexpensive Wedding Promotion at Hotels
By Kwon Mee-yoo
Staff Reporter
Bless your wedding day at local hotels with a luxurious mood and cost-efficient promotions.
``The best thing about hotel weddings is that the couple can have more time and space,'' said Kim Yun-a, wedding planner of Lotte Hotel Seoul. Unlike ordinary wedding halls where marital ceremonies are held every 30 minutes on weekends and the newlyweds and their guests rush out to make room for the next couple, the Lotte Hotel has a minimum of five hours between weddings.
Kim also pointed out that hotels have accumulated know-how on serving high-quality meals and providing excellent service. The furniture and tableware of the hotel is luxurious as well.
The hotel holds an average of five to six weddings a week. Still, weekend marriages are the most popular. Two increasingly popular trends are weekday weddings and intercultural marriages. Weekday weddings are held around 7 p.m. so the guests can come to the ceremony after work. According to the hotel, it also has some two intercultural weddings a month.
Lotte also offers ``House Weddings'' at halls located on the 36th floor. The house wedding can hold some 200 guests, while wedding halls on the second and third floor can accommodate 400-600 guests. With a fascinating view of Seoul through wide windows, the house wedding offers a more comfortable and intimate nuptial ceremony.
``The house wedding is becoming more popular as the newly-married couple wants to make the ceremony their party, unlike older generations, which focused on drawing more guests,'' Kim said.
Under the theme of ``Color Your Wedding,'' Lotte offers everything possible to differentiate each couple's wedding. After consultations, table clothes, napkins, tableware, flowers, lights, the stage and everything else in the wedding hall will be decorated in the couple's choice of colors such as gold, white, blue, brown and many more.
The Lotte wedding planner takes care of the process of preparing the marriage ceremony from start to finish. ``It's worth working as a wedding planner because I help the newlyweds and their family going through a special moment in family history. Sometimes I also take care of their baby's birthday party or another wedding in the family and I feel like a family member myself,'' Kim said.
To overcome the financial meltdown and the fixed idea of ``expensiveness,'' hotels offer various benefits for wedding couples, especially during the off-season. The Lotte Hotel Seoul offers a 10 percent discount for weekday weddings and 20 percent on Sunday evening weddings.
For couples who plan to marry in June through August, the Lotte Hotel Seoul is going to offer the ``Summer Eternity'' promotion. If guests number more than 300, the bride can have a bridal shower at the hotel and wedding meals are offered at a special price.
JW Marriott Seoul has ``The Last Minute Wedding,'' offering an exceptional discount for those booking reservations two months or less before the wedding date. The course menu will be 50,000 won per person, a 20 percent discount on wine and 10 percent off on flowers.
Grand InterContinental Seoul and COEX InterContinental Seoul offers free accommodation on the wedding day when 200 guests are reserved for catering. Fresh seasonal fruits, the finest chocolate and a bottle of wine will be prepared in the couple's room to celebrate the occasion.
The Imperial Palace Hotel includes the full set of Chinaware, including two sets of appetizer and main plates, two sets of coffee cups and two wine glasses, the same tableware used for the wedding ceremony, for the newlyweds. Furthermore, a hotel membership card will be issued so that they can benefit from various hotel services.
Sheraton Grande Walkerhill offers various types of weddings with ``Refined Elegance at its Finest.'' It's Vista Hall Wedding offers a panoramic view of the Han River, the Walkerhill Theater Wedding features crystal balls and 3D rose petals, and the private and upscale Aston House Wedding and Myongwolgwan Garden Wedding offer traditional and modern beauty. There's a 30 percent discount on Sunday evening weddings at the Walkerhill Theater and 5-10 percent discounts on all weddings held in July and August.